Homelessness is not a crime

The recent letter from Juneau legislators on the issue of homelessness to the leaders of Anchorage was inaccurate, dangerous and complacent. This letter emphasized the need to “clean up the city’s parks," citing their “existential threat to our community’s economic future.” This request ignores the reality of homelessness and the interventions necessary to address it; it also shows a lack of initiative to research homelessness and reach out to local officials working on this issue to get an accurate snapshot of the situation in Anchorage.

I appreciate that some legislators have publicly recognized the harms of their rhetoric. Regardless of apology or retraction, there is no doubt this letter sanctioned dehumanizing, unproductive and dangerous lines of dialogue as Anchorage residents talk about homelessness. The rhetoric further dehumanizes those who are suffering from substance use disorders, those in the most dire poverty and those without a voice. This encourages our community to forget these “criminals” and “drug addicts” are human beings in need of homes and treatment. I also ask the legislators to consider: How is a “criminal” less homeless than a “real” person suffering from homelessness? And, if you push to criminalize the act of being homeless in Anchorage, how are the two different?

This letter continues the rhetoric that Anchorage is doing nothing. The Municipality of Anchorage is working with the social service providers, the Mobile Intervention Team and the Anchorage Police Department to address the needs of those living in our green spaces. Those leading the charge to solve homelessness in Anchorage have developed coalitions and partnerships not only locally (e.g., Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness, Homeless Resource Advisory Council, Homeless Leadership Council), but also nationally. Anchorage is developing a Pay for Success Social Impact bond project, a Youth Homelessness Demonstration Project and the Path to Independence project, in addition to its work on the Mobile Intervention Team, to name a few. Each of these projects are in place thanks to city leadership, not state action. Beyond proposing an alcohol tax to improve and expand efforts while state funding decreases, Anchorage is on the forefront of implementing solution-oriented programs. This is with no help from the state, which imperils these efforts by pulling matching funds from federally funded Housing and Urban Development programs and disinvesting in proven methods for solving homelessness.

This state Legislature is made up of many who have cut budgets to social services year after year. If our leaders want to work with Anchorage to improve public safety, cutting the budget for substance use treatment beds, permanent supportive housing and other proven solutions belies that desire. Those in illegal encampments are more likely to be victims of assault than those with a home, and often at the hands of the housed.

The only “existential threat to our community’s economic future” is the lost potential and retraumatization of those people experiencing homelessness. Citing the court decision in Martin v. Boise in an effort to encourage the confiscation and disposal of “waste” ignores the exact reason this case was litigated. The Ninth Circuit stated municipalities cannot punish people for being forced to sleep on public property when other alternative shelter is not available. Encouraging unconstitutional treatment of vulnerable residents is dangerous and contemptible. I encourage lawmakers to more thoroughly research their recommendations to better understand the impacts of these decisions on constituents. We are trusting elected officials to make informed decisions on the behalf of the public; this response throws that trust into question.

Mackenzie Pope is a member of the Alaska Young Democrats, a community activist and a former employee of the Anchorage Mayor’s Office.

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